Our Power Plants

The original American Falls Power Plant was built in 1902, acquired by Idaho Power in 1916 and rebuilt by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in 1927.

Idaho Power added a power plant in 1976 when the Bureau again rebuilt the dam. It has three generators with a total nameplate generating capacity of
92,340 kilowatts. The dam is used primarily for irrigation and secondarily for power production and recreation opportunities. It's located at river mile 714.7.

The 164-megawatt Bennett Mountain Power Plant located in Mountain Home, about five miles east of the Evander Andrews Complex, is a simple cycle combustion turbine power plant. Construction was completed in 2005 and the plant produced its first electricity for the grid in late February 2005.

Both the Danskin and Bennett Mountain plants are "peaking" generating resources, for use primarily in meeting short-duration demands for electricity during hot summer afternoons when air conditioning and irrigation loads reach their highest point.

The nameplate capacity for this plant is 172,800 kilowatts (kW).

Bliss (Hydro)

Bliss Power Plant was completed in 1950 and includes a powerhouse and three generators with a total nameplate generating capacity of 75,000 kilowatts. It's located at river mile 560.3.

The plant currently has 120 employees and is located 13 miles southwest of Boardman, Oregon, in north central Oregon. Many consider Boardman to be one of the nation's cleanest coal plants.

Cooling water comes from Carty Reservoir, a 1,450-acre pond that reduces the need for cooling water from natural streams or rivers.
This avoids potential discharges that might have an impact on fish and wildlife. At 656-feet, the plant's chimney is Oregon's tallest
man-made structure, with a base diameter of 48 feet and a top diameter of 30 feet.

The boiler consumes 5.1 billion Btu per hour through coal combustion to produce 3.8 million pounds an hour of 1,005-degree Fahrenheit steam.
The plant can generate up to 575 megawatts of electricity per hour. Idaho Power’s share is 57.5 MW.

The nameplate capacity for this plant is 64,200 kilowatts (kW).

Brownlee (Hydro)

Our largest project with five generators rated at 585,400 kilowatts, it was completed in 1959 and is the most upstream of the three dams in the Hells Canyon Complex.
It's located at river mile 285.0. Today the three-dam complex supplies power, provides flood control, and provides recreation opportunities to the region. Brownlee Dam
and Reservoir's name is derived from nearby Brownlee Creek, most likely named after the Brownlee family who settled the area in 1862 and operated a ferry across the
Snake during the late 1800s.

The Baker County Hewitt/Holcomb Parks Web page has more information about this area.

C.J. Strike (Hydro)

Named after former Idaho Power President C.J. Strike, the plant was completed in 1952.
Located on the Snake River southwest of Mountain Home, Idaho, at river mile 494.0, the plant's
three generators have a total nameplate generating capacity of 82,800 kilowatts.

Originally built in 1926 on a Payette River diversion by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, a new plant was completed in 1984 that uses the dam’s full power production potential.
The plant has two generators with a total nameplate generating capacity of 12,420 kilowatts. Generation is tied to seasonal reservoir releases for irrigation controlled by the
Bureau of Reclamation. The Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation operates the recreational facilities at Cascade reservoir.

Clear Lake (Hydro)

This is Idaho Power’s smallest power generator, with a nameplate generating capacity of 2,500 kilowatts.
We built the plant in 1937 as part of a development phase during the Great Depression. It is located on the
Snake River near Buhl, Idaho, at river mile 593.0. Underground springs supply the water used to generate power.

Visit the Hagerman Valley Recreation Area section for information about our facilities in this area.

Evander Andrews (Natural Gas-Fired)

The Evander Andrews Power Complex is named after the late Master Sergeant Evander Andrews,
the first military casualty of America's war on terrorism. Andrews was stationed at Mountain Home Air Force Base.

The nameplate capacity for this plant is 270,900 kilowatts (kW).

Hells Canyon (Hydro)

Located 21 miles downstream of Oxbow Dam, Hells Canyon Dam is the third
and last project in the Hells Canyon Project. It began generating electricity
in 1967 and has a nameplate generating capacity of 391,500 kilowatts.

Named after the renowned explorer and mountain man, Jim Bridger, the plant employs approximately 360 people and is owned by Idaho Power (one-third)
and PacifiCorp (two-thirds). Each of the four turbine-generator sets has a nameplate rating of about 530 megawatts (MW). Idaho Power's share of the
plant's production is 704 MW.

Its boilers each burn over 500,000 pounds of coal per-hour to produce 4,000,000 pounds of steam an hour. This steam drives the turbines. Water
for the plant comes from the Green River through a 40-mile-long steel pipeline to a reservoir at the plant site.

Sub-bituminous coal which fuels the plant is delivered by an overland conveyor from the Bridger Mine or by train and truck.

Langley Gulch (Natural Gas-Fired)

To fulfill Idaho Power’s commitment to meet growing electricity demands, the company added a new generation resource in July 2012.
The Langley Gulch Power Plant is a clean, quiet, highly-efficient, combined-cycle combustion turbine (CCCT). It uses two turbines to
generate electricity—one with natural gas, the other steam. The exhaust heat from the combustion of natural gas is used to make steam,
which drives the steam turbine. The plant's generating capacity ranges from 300 megawatts in the summer and 330 megawatts in winter.

In addition to providing electricity for Idaho Power’s customers, Langley Gulch helps integrate intermittent and alternative resources
such as wind and solar from area projects in our system. The plant is located on 137 acres in rural Payette County.

Lower Malad and Upper Malad Power Plants (Hydro)

The Beaver River Power Company built the original Lower Malad Power Plant in 1911 on the Malad River. Idaho Power acquired the
plant in 1916. Today the Lower Malad Power Plant is located on the Snake River at river mile 571.2. It diverts water from the
Malad River to a powerhouse equipped with one generator rated at 13,500 kilowatts.

The Upper Malad and Lower Malad Power Plants were re-developed after World War II. Located near Hagerman, Idaho,
the Upper Malad Power Plant has a nameplate generating capacity of 8,270 kilowatts. It includes a diversion dam at river
mile 2.1 on the Malad River, a concrete gravity structure, and a powerhouse with one generator.

Built in 1910 by the Greater Shoshone and Twin Falls Water Power Company, Idaho Power acquired the plant in 1916 and
rebuilt it in 1949. The plant has a total nameplate generating capacity of 60,000 kilowatts and includes a dam and
powerhouse with four generators. It's located at river mile 573.0.

Oxbow takes its name from a three-mile bend in the Snake River. Early settlers said this part of the river
resembled the U-shaped collar around an ox’s neck. Located 13 miles downstream of Brownlee Dam, Oxbow is
one of the world’s most unusual dam sites. Completed in 1961, it was the second dam of the Hells Canyon Project
and is rated at 190,000 kilowatts.

Visit the McCormick Park section for information about our facilities in this area.

Salmon Diesel (Diesel-Fired)

Two diesel units provide 5 MW as a back up power supply for the Salmon, Idaho area. If the community were to lose its main transmission line the diesel
generators would provide needed power for customers like the hospital and utilities like telephone and power.

The units, located about a half-mile north of Salmon are operated only during outage situations or for maintenance
tests to verify their continued ability to serve. The diesel units were installed in 1967.

The units are comprised of reciprocating engines that are an adaptation of railroad locomotive-type engines.
They are housed in two mobile home-type structures within the Salmon substation yard.

Shoshone Falls (Hydro)

Built in 1907 it was the first power plant in Idaho's Magic Valley. It was acquired by Idaho Power in 1916 and rebuilt in 1921.
Shoshone Falls Power Plant is located on the Snake River near Twin Falls, Idaho, at river mile 614.7 . The plant has a nameplate
generating capacity of 12,500 kilowatts. It includes a diversion dam and a powerhouse with three generators.

This was the first power plant built on the Snake River. Located near Kuna, Idaho, at river mile 457.7, the original plant was built in 1901 to supply electricity
to nearby mines. Idaho Power acquired the plant in 1916.

Originally there were 10 generators rated at 10,400 kilowatts which were decommissioned in 1994 along with the old powerhouse. It is now a historic display.
A new powerhouse with two generating units called “pit turbines,” was completed in 1994 which increased the project’s nameplate generating capacity to 27,170 kilowatts.

Visit the Swan Falls Dam section for information about our facilities in this area.

Thousand Springs (Hydro)

The Thousand Springs site had many developers and owners but it wasn’t until 1912 that power was first generated at the site by the Thousand Springs Power Company.
It's located at river mile 584.7. Idaho Power acquired the site in 1916 and updated the plant in 1921. The current plant includes diversion structures and a
powerhouse with three generators with a total nameplate generating capacity of 8,800 kilowatts.

Idaho Power built the original plant in 1935 and updated it in 1995 with a diversion structure and two powerhouses with a total nameplate generating capacity of
52,897 kilowatts. It's located at river mile 617.

This is one project with two power plants-Upper Salmon A and B. Idaho Power built Upper Salmon A in 1937. The plant includes a diversion structure and two generators
with a total nameplate generating capacity of 18,000 kilowatts. It's located at river mile 579.6.

Upper Salmon B Power Plant is located upstream from Upper Salmon A Power Plant at river mile 580.8. Built in 1947, Upper Salmon B is comprised of a diversion
structure and two generators with a total nameplate generating capacity of 16,500 kilowatts.

Converting coal into reliable, low-cost energy is a full-time job at North Valmy. Twenty-four-hours-a-day, 365-days-a-year, it generates the electricity customers depend on to run their homes and businesses. At the same time, all plant operations place a strong emphasis in protecting the environment.

Cooling water comes from three well fields located adjacent to the plant.

Ownership is shared equally by Idaho Power and Sierra Pacific. Sierra Pacific is responsible for plant operations and employs approximately 106 people on-site.

The low-sulfur coal used at the plant comes from Utah or Wyoming. The plant can generate up to 260 MW for Idaho Power customers.